Home for Christmas
by Im Old Greg
Summary: Set eight years after I'm Still Here. Just a one shot of Sarah waiting with Gibbs for her husband to come home for Christmas. Based on song, Home for Christmas.


**A/N: This is set in the future of my I'm Still Here universe, if you hadn't allready guessed. Just a one shot I wrote because I was feeling slightly Christmasy after listening to Bieber's new album. I'm still working on Stag Night, just haven't really had much time and my mind is not in it at the moment. Sorry. This is a song of his album. Don't own anything Ovbs. **

**Anyway, before anyone says, I know I said Zach's main goal in life was to be in the Marines, but just bear in mind that this is the future and alot can happen over time. I reckon Jackson Gibbs was Air Force anyway, and we know that the Gibbs family is full of Military blood. Zach's 23, the boys are 2, Sarah's 24. He joined up when he was 18. **

**Home for Christmas **

_Looking out the Window, Waitin' for your head lights to pull up in the driveway. It's really coming down tonight. _

Sarah Gibbs was anxiously kept looking out of the window every other minute for the sign of her husband, Zach Jethro Gibbs' lift from the airport. Every time she looked out the window she looked to the clock she could see in the kitchen, the hands were moving too fast and her husband still wasn't here.

"He'll be here Sarah, don't worry" Gibbs reassured her from where he was playing on the floor with his twin grandsons.

Zach was a fast jet pilot in the Royal Air Force and was based in RAF Waddington. He had toured in Afghanistan, Falkland Island, Cyprus and was due to head back out for a six month tour in Afghanistan again after the new years.

He had been living on base, along with Sarah and his two sons and he had to work up to the day before Christmas eve, so he had sent his wife and boys home to spend the holidays at the Gibbs household early.

"I hope so" She smiled, looking down as her two blond headed sons played with their toy airplanes on the floor with their grandfather. This would be the first Christmas he got to spend with his children because usually he was on tour. She just hoped he made it in time.

_Your scared that I won't make it through the storm, you should be here with me safe and warm._

"It's really starting to come down now" Sarah spoke more to herself than anyone in particular, watching as the thick snow flakes fell from the sky adding to the snow that was all ready on the ground.

"He'll make it" Gibbs said again. He knew his son, and his son would do everything in his power to make sure he was here, and then some.

"He should be here now though" She picked up one of the dozing toddlers of the sofa where they were watching a Christmas film before they went to sleep.

"I know" The silver-haired man picked up the other two-year-old, following his daughter-in-law upstairs to the spare bedroom he had decorated for the two boys.

Zach was supposed to be here at lunch time, but his flight had been delayed in Heathrow airport because of the snow.

_Hurry up Zach_ Sarah begged mentally _You should be here with me, your dad and the boys._

_I'll be waiting under the mistletoe, while you're driving here through the winter snow. Baby think of me if it helps you get home._

Sarah sat on the sofa, a warm mug of hot chocolate in her hand as she watched out of the windows for any sign of a car.

The boys had been put to bed well over an hour ago, Gibbs was in his basement working on his latest project, and still there was no Zach.

Think of the boys she thought, think of me, think of anything, just as long as it get you home.

_When the only gift that I really need, is to have your arms wrapped around on me, baby think of me if it helps to get you home, home this Christmas. _

Another hour had flown past, with the only thing to look at when she wasn't looking at the window was the hundreds of presents sat under the Christmas tree, mostly for the twins, but a fair share of them were for her, Zach and Gibbs.

She didn't want any of them; she wanted her husband at home with her for the first time in three years, without having to worry about if he would be alive for the next Christmas, or if today was the day she was going to have the knock on the door.

He would wrap his arms around her; they would watch the snow flakes fall down together with the only sound being the crackling of the fire, and she wouldn't have a care in the world because he was safe.

_Pacing down the hallway, trying to fight the urge to call. I could almost hear a pin drop, except for the clock on the wall._

It was nearing midnight now, Gibbs had yet to reemerge from his basement and Sarah was pacing the living room, her eyes transfixed on the window every time she faced it.

She wanted to call him up to see where he was, but it would do no good. He'd be here when he was here and a phone call was not going to speed that up. But it was juts so frustrating to have not have heard from him in hours.

_And I'm scared that you won't make it through the storm. You should be here with me safe and warm._

The hand were not far from midnight now, Gibbs had come up to see if Sarah had heard anything from him.

Both of them were starting to get worried about his safety, the roads were covered with snow, there was no chance a car could drive down their street so they didn't fare much hope for the other roads.

"I don't think he's going to make it Uncle Gibbs. Do you think he's okay?"

Gibbs wrapped an arm around her pulling his daughter-in-law closer to him "He'll make it Sarah, I know he will" He said confidently. But deep inside he knew that there was a very high chance that he would not make it. "Here is where he belongs, with you and the boys"

_I'll be waiting under the mistletoe, while you're driving here through the winter snow. Baby think of me if it helps you get home._

Midnight had come, and gone, Gibbs sat on his favorite arm chair reading, or trying to read anyway because his eyes kept wandering to the window.

While Sarah carried on with her pacing, stopping when she came under the doorframe. She looked up at the decorations that she had the kids had put up, her mostly.

There was a piece of mistletoe above her, and she let her mind wander to all of the things she would do to her husband if he was here right now.

_When the only gift that I really need, is to have your arms wrapped around on me, baby think of me if it helps to get you home, home this Christmas. _

She longed for her husband's touch, for him to caress her face as he gently kissed her lips, for him to make love to her until the early hours of the morning.

She had learnt five years ago when Zach was eighteen and joined up with the RAF, that they had to make the most of the little time they got together. It was a hard life being the wife of a military man, especially when he was signed up to a country so far away.

After she had finished collage, she had moved to live on base in the UK with Zach until he had been sent on another tour. Then while he was on tour she came back up here to live with her brother again and carry on with her writing career.

Then the twins had come, being born in Wales, Zach's home country, and shortly after that he had to go on tour again. She had moved back to America with the boys, and Gibbs had offered them a place and had been a huge help in raising the twins.

This would be the twenty-three year old man's last two weeks with his family before he went away again for six months. And she needed him home because the clock was ticking down quickly.

_I'm praying that you make it home tonight, so we could lay down by the fireside. You and I till Christmas morning. _

She looked up to the ceiling, sending a prayer to God for the hundredth time that day that Zach made it home tonight, safe and sound. That was all she wanted, it wasn't too much to ask the big man in the sky, was it?

_There's nothing else that I want this year, more than just to have you here, I'll be waiting… _

It was early hours of the morning, Gibbs and Sarah were sitting on the sofa together, looking out of the window like they had been the past few hours in silence.

There was all ready some lights on in a few of the neighbors houses, the happy families getting up to spend their Christmas day together.

They hadn't heard from Zach at all, and Gibbs was considering calling out a search party even though he knew it would be fruitless.

"Why can't he be here Gibbs?" Sarah asked pitifully.

"I don't" He sighed.

"The boy's will be so disappointed when they wake up. All they've wanted all week is for their dad to be here with them, and I've wanted him to be here on Christmas for a few years now"

"Me too" The agent admitted.

_I'll be waiting under the mistletoe, while you're driving here through the winter snow. Baby think of me if it helps you get home._

The sun was rising in the East now, and the boys had just woken up calling for their mummy and daddy to come and bring them downstairs.

Except their daddy wasn't there to fetch them down in their matching Rudolph pajamas, or see them open the bulk of their presents together while Gibbs was on the camera, still throwing looks over his shoulder to the window, just as Sarah was.

"Daddy!" The older of the two twins shouted excitedly.

"Daddy's not here baby" She smiled softly, feeling sorry for her child "He's got stuck at work"

"Daddy! Daddy!" They both started shouting together, getting on their feet and toddling over to the window.

Gibbs and Sarah looked over, and sure enough there was the young blond man wrapped up in his warm winter coat, gloves, scarf and hat and still looking freezing as he marched up the garden path, a bright smile on his face.

He opened the front door, taking of his extra layers and walking over to his wife and wrapping his arms around her tightly.

"Zach!" She said relieved, hugging him back just as tight. "I didn't think you'd make it"

"And miss my first Christmas with my two boys?" He looked at her incredulously, his cheeks tinted pink from the sudden warm air after being outside in the cold "Never"

"How did you get home?" Gibbs asked, curious because he hadn't heard a car. He didn't think a car could even drive in these conditions.

"I was about ten miles when the rental broke down, it was too slippery to drive anyway. So I walked" He shrugged like it was nothing. He was a solider after all.

"You walked?" Sarah raised her eyebrows. He must be freezing.

"Yeah, I promised you that I'd be here and I keep my promises. That's what dad taught me to do" He smiled at his father quickly before looking down at his wife.

"I'm glad you're here"

"Me too"

"Miswle-toey daddy" The younger of the two twins interrupted deciding they were not moving quickly enough for his taste so he hurried things along, pointing above his mother's and father's head.

"You had to tell them didn't you Teddy?" Gibbs playfully growled at the toddler, picking him and his brother up off the floor.

Even though they were all grown up with children, he still treated them like they were the teenagers who weren't allowed to be left alone together because of their hormones. He didn't mind when they were actually alone anymore, he just didn't like public displays of affection too much.

"I thought no one would ever mention it" Sarah grinned, letting her husband kiss her.

_When the only gift that I really need, is to have your arms wrapped around on me, baby think of me if it helps to get you home, home this Christmas. _

They didn't let the kiss get too intimate because Gibbs sounded like he had a frog in his throat after a minute. But Sarah stayed wrapped in her husbands arms as they sat down and watched the twins open the rest of their presents and opened some of their own.

Sarah wasn't that interested in the presents anymore, because she had everything she wanted right here in this room with her. Her two little boys, and her husband back home safe with them for Christmas.

**Happy Christmas! In 27 days! **


End file.
